In recent years, various kinds of documents are provided through electronic communication networks such as the Internet. Especially, remote print services using electronic communication networks have been proposed and implemented recently. In a remote print service, print terminals such as a multi-functional printing device and multi-functional copying machine are installed in stores such as a convenience store, companies, and public facilities. Documents managed by the central host are printed and output from the multi-functional printing devices or copying machines through an electronic communication network. For example, a service has also been proposed in which documents uploaded to the host in advance are printed and output from printing devices installed in convenience stores and public facilities located at various places.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-175241 describes a document providing apparatus which implements printing through a communication network in accordance with a print request from a user. This document providing apparatus receives a document reservation instruction containing a user identifier and document identifying information and saves a document specified by the document identifying information in correspondence with the user identifier. Upon receiving a document output instruction containing a user identifier from a printing device through a communication network, the document providing apparatus transmits a document saved in correspondence with the user identifier to the printing device through the communication network.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-229939 describes a system which sets limitation information for data processing of document data in correspondence with each operation such as print, copy, or editing and adds the information as control data to limit operations possible for the document data.
These conventional document providing systems cannot limit users who can use a specific printing device or devices capable of printing document data uploaded by a user. That is, the range of the service is common to all users or all printing devices. Hence, for example, users who can use a printing device owned by a company cannot be limited to users in the company. Alternatively, only a specific printing device installed in, e.g., the lobby of a company cannot be opened to specific users such as users in an affiliated company or customer company.
Consider a system to provide a function of allowing any person except a user who has registered a document to print the document by designating the document ID. In this case, printing devices capable of printing a designated document cannot be limited to printing devices installed in specific places such as a company or affiliated company. Even in the conventional document providing systems, the functions can be provided as separate services. However, the flexibility decreases because printing devices installed in public spaces such as convenience stores and public facilities cannot print.